Concealed latching mechanism for swingable shelves

ABSTRACT

A SEMI-PERMANENT STORAGE FACILITY WITH A SHELF WHICH IS PIVOTALLY MOUNTED FOR SWINGING MOVEMENT BETWEEN A NORMAL LOWERED POSITION AND A RAISED POSITION. THE SHELF IS PROVIDED WITH CONCEALED LATCHING MECHANISMS OF THE SLIDING BOLT-TYPE WHICH NOT ONLY PERMIT THE SHELF TO BE LOCKED IN ITS NORMAL LOWERED POSITION BUT WHICH ALSO STRUCTURALLY REINFORCE THE SHELF AND AID IN CENTERING IT AS IT IS LOWERED FROM ITS RAISED POSITION.

Feb. 9, 1971 R, Aj MAGNUSON EI'AL 3,561,837

CONCEALED LATCHING MECHANISM FOR `SWINGABLE SHELVES Filed April s, '1969* 2 sheets-sheet 1 luvsu'rons RAmoNa AMAsNusoN DONALD L. BRoRSoN i 4 7 JJM Mlm/J,

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Feb. 9, 1971 R, A, MAGNUSON ETAL 3,561,837

CONCEALED LATCHING MECHANISM FOR SWINGABLE SHELVES Filed April s, 1969 j 2 sheets-sheet 2 15 Invem'ons RAYMOND AMAGNusoN DoNALD L, BRoRsoN United States Patent O 3,561,837 CONCEALED LATCHING MECHANISM FOR SWINGABLE SHELVES Raymond A. Magnuson, Hinsdale, and Donald L. Brorson, Western Springs, Ill, assgnors to Beatrice Foods Co., Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Filed Apr. 3, 1969, Ser. No. 813,007 Int. Cl. A47b 67/02 U.S. Cl. 312-313 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A semi-permanent storage facility with a shelf which is pivotally mounted for swinging movement between a normal lowered position and a raised position. The shelf is provided with concealed latching mechanisms of the sliding bolt-type which not only permit the shelf to be locked in its normal lowered position but which also structurally reinforce the shelf and aid in centering it as it is lowered from its raised position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to storage facilities, and more particularly to swingable shelves for use in semi-permanent storage facilities, such as cabinets and wardrobes.

The recent trend in institutional architecture, for example in the design of schools and hospitals, is to provide for the ready conversion of any given floor space from use for one purpose to use for an entirely different purpose. One result of this has been the development and widespread use of semi-permanent cabinets and wardrobes to supplement or even wholly replace their built-in, permanent counterparts.

One very important consideration in the design of semipermanent storage facilities is to minimize the interference provided thereby to the cleaning of the underlying oor area with powered cleaning equip-ment. This has been accomplished, without sacricing either aesthetic appearance or storage capacity through the advent of storage facilities with lower shelves that may be swung up and away from the tioor for oor cleaning purposes. One very excellent example of such a storage facility is the wardrobe shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,351,403, issued to Raymond A. Magnuson, one of the instant inventors, on Nov. 7, 1967. Experience has shown that this patented storage facility is entirely adequate for its intended purposes and offers a very minimum of obstruction to the underlying floor area. Indeed, the only deficiencies that have been noted are (l) a tendency for the lower swingable shelf therein to weaken and deform under heavy loads, such as when stepped upon to reach something placed at a higher level, and (2) the facility with which the lower shelf can be swung up by unauthorized persons, such as schoolchildren.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The primary object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a new and improved swingable Shelf, particularly suitable for use in semi-permanent storage facilities. More specically, it is an object of this invention to provide a reinforced shelf for storage facilities of the foregoing type, together with a latching mechanism for locking the shelf in its normal, horizontal position. A detailed related object is to provide a shelf latching mechanism which additionally serves to structurally strengthen and reinforce the shelf.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a shelf latching mechanism which is effective when locked to prevent both upward and outward movement of the 3,56l,837 Patented Feb. 9, 1971 ICC shelf. A more detailed object is to provide a concealed shelf latching mechanism of the foregoing type to reduce the unauthorized manipulation of the shelf.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The manner in which these objectives are achieved, as well as other objects and advantages of the invention, will be readily appreciated when the following detailed description is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of the lower portion of a semi-concealed wardrobe including a swingable shelf embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary cross section, taken approximately along the line 2 2 in FIG. 1, with the dotdash lines showing the shelf swung upwardly from its normal, horizontal solid line position;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary top plan view, partially in section, illustrating the shelf latching mechanism and shelf reinforcement provided in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a further enlarged, fragmentary side view, looking approximately along the line 4 4 in FIG. 3, to illustrate the locking action of one of the shelf latching mechanisms;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary View, taken approximately along the line 5 5 in FIG. 3, to illustrate one of the shelf latching mechanisms as seen from its inner end;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary cross section, taken approximately along the line 6 6 in FIG. 3 to show the lengthwise reinforcement provided for the shelf; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary plan view showing an alternative spring biased shelf latching mechanism.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT While the invention is described in detail hereinafter in connection with the illustrated embodiment, it is to be understood that the intent is not to limit it to that embodiment. To the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as dened by the appended claims.

Turning now to the drawings, and particularly to FIGS. 1-3, it will be seen that the invention is there shown as being applied to a semi-concealed wardrobe 11, and specifically to a lower swingable shelf 12 therein. The swingable shelf shown is formed by two independently swingable half shelves 13 and 14, respectively. Of course, it will be appreciated that this environment is strictly exemplary, since the invention may be employed equally as well in connection with swingable shelves provided in other type storage facilities. For example, the invention may be readily used to provide latching for and reinforcement of the swingable shelves frequently found at the lower levels of semi-permanent, semi-concealed and fully concealed, upright storage cabinets. Moreover, while the general reason for swingably mounting shelves in such storage facilities is to permit them to be swung upwardly and away from the underlying floor area to permit easy cleaning of the fioor and, therefore, such shelves are most commonly found only at the lower levels of the storage facility, it will be understood that the present invention may be applied to swingable shelves regardless of their height.

With that in mind, and returning for a more detailed consideration of FIGS. 1-3, the wardrobe 11 is backed by a wall 15 and secured thereto for support, typically by bolts (not shown) which are driven through a rearward supporting framework 15a. Only a part of the rearward framework is shown, and that part will be seen to include a vertical post 16, with its lower end terminating slightly above the floor level, and a pair of cross arms 17 and 18, which are rigidly secured to opposite sides of the post 16 and which extend horizontally therefrom along the rear edge of the shelf 12. A similar framework 20 is provided at the front of the wardrobe 11. This forward framework includes a vertical post 21, which preferably has its lower end resting on the iioor to support part of the wardrobes weight, and a pair of cross arms 22 and 23, which are rigidly secured to opposite sides of the post 21 and which extend horizontally therefrom along the front edge of the shelf 12. The forward framework 20 provides a backing support for a vertical concealing panel 24, which may be secured thereto by any suitable means (not shown), and is braced against movement relative to the rearward framework a by the members connected therebetween, such as other shelves and hanger rails (not shown) and preferably including the shelf 13.

Since the illustrated half shelves `13 and 14 are identical only one will be described in detail, and it will be understood that the description applies equally as well to the other. Furthermore, since the two half shelves are independent of one another and since the invention can be readily employed with a full shelf, the exemplary described half shelf is simply referred to hereinafter as a shelf.

Taking the shelf 13 as the exemplary one, it will be seen that it is mounted to be swung upwardly about a generally horizontal axis from its normal horizontal or lowered position to clear the underlying floor area. The shelf is supported in its normal horizontal position by stops (only one stop 29 being shown), which are secured to the stationary cross arms 17 and 22 and which extend inwardly therefrom to underlie the front and rear edges of the shelf. Of course, it will be understood that any number of stops can be used and that the general practice is to employ whatever number of spaced stops are required to support the shelf, without significant bending or warping, under its maximum expected load. To enable the shelf to be swung upwardly, opposed pivot pins (only one pivot pin 26 being shown) are xed to each of the cross arms 17 and 22 and extend inwardly therefrom through plates 27 and 128 which are secured to the front and rear edges, respectively, of the shelf 13. Preferably, the spacings of the pivot pins from the posts 16 and 21 and from the inner end of the shelf 13 are selected so that the shelf may be swung slightly past vertical, say by 10 or 15 degrees, to rest against the posts in its raised position without the inner end of the shelf providing substantial obstruction of the underlying oor area.

In keeping with the primary aim of the present invention, the shelf 13 is provided with concealed latching mechanisms, indicated generally at 31 and 32, which permit the shelf to be locked in its normal horizontal position and which further materially contribute to the structural reinforcement of the shelf. It will be understood that the latching mechanisms shown can be used with a wide vatriety of shelves and concealed in a number of different ways. However, the particular arrangement illustrated, where the latching mechanisms 31 and 32 reinforce the outer end of the shelf, is an excellent example of a use of the latching mechanism to provide important reinforcement for the shelf, since it is the outer end of the shelf which is most frequently subjected to abnormally heavy loads, such as the weight of a person standing thereon to reach something stored at a higher level,

More specifically, referring to FIGS. 3-5, it will be seen that the latching mechanisms shown are sliding bolttypes which, in this specific instance, are concealed by a downwardly depending and rearwardly opening C-shaped channel 33 which extends the width of the shelf along its outer edge. The movable portions of the locking mechanisms, namely, the bolts 34 and 35, are slidably housed within the channel 33 and are preferably formed from a high strength material, such as steel bar stock, to provide the most effective reinforcement for the outer end of the shelf. Moreover, to provide still further reinforcement for the outer end of the shelf, it is frequently possible to lit a spacer bar 36, which is also formed from a material such as steel bar stock, in the channel 33 between the bolts 34 and 35 without hampering the freedom of movement required of the bolts to lock and unlock the shelf.

The latching mechanisms 31 and 32 are mirrorimages of one another. Accordingly, only one will be described in detail and it will be understood that the description applies equally as well to the other. Taking the latching mechanism 32 as the exemplary one, it will be seen that the shelf 13 is locked and unlocked when in its normal horizontal or lowered position by moving the bolt 35 toward and away from a cooperating fixed strike 37 to slide a tongue 38 provided at the outer end of the bolt under and out from under a substantially horizontal stop 39 provided by the strike 37. Desirably, to assure that the tongue 38 can be readily slid under the stop 41 and to facilitate movement of the tongue 38 out from under the stop, the tongue 38 is bent slightly downwardly from true horizontal, say by about 5, thereby providing a self-camming type action.

In carrying out the present invention, both the bolt 35 and the strike 37 are specially designed, the former to aid in reinforcing the shelf and the latter to aid in centering and supporting the shelf when it is lowered to its normal horizontal position.

More particularly, to reinforce the shelf 13, the bolt 35 shown includes an elongated shank portion 41 which is slidably housed on edge within the channel 33. Accordingly, the forces generated by loading of the shelf act substantially laterally of the shank 41, with the result that maximum advantage is taken of the strength of the material from which the bolt 35 is formed. The outer end of the shank 41 is joined to the tongue 38 by an intermediate section 42 which extends rearwardly through the open side of a channel 33 and then downwardly to the tongue 38, while the inner end of the shank 41 is joined to a finger catch 43I which extends rearwardly through the open side of the channel 33 to facilitate the movement of the bolt toward and away from the strike. As will be appreciated, the finger catch 43 is concealed by the shelf and, therefore, not likely to be noticed by one who might otherwise be tempted to play with the shelf.

The strike portion 37 of the latching mechanism is shown in the exemplary embodiment to have a horizontal section 45 at its outer end which is secured to the underside of the cross arm 17, typically by welding. The stop 39 preferably underlies and supports the shelf 13 when it is in its normal horizontal position and, therefore, between the horizontal section 45 and the stop 39 there is an inclined section 46.

In keeping with one of the more detailed features of the present invention, the shelf 13 participates in the vertical bracing of the forward framework 20` and the associated concealing panel 24 against movement, particularly vertical pivoting, relative to the rearward framework 15a. To this end, the plates 27 and 28 extend substantially the entire length of the shelf and have tab sections 47 at either end which are bent under the shelf. For the same reason; the shelf 13 is sized so that the outer faces of the plates 27 and 28 are held in firm frictional engagement with the inner faces of the cross arms 17 and 22, respectively, when the shelf is in its normal horizontal position, and the strike portions of the locking mechanisms 31 and 32 are both provided at their inner ends with a camming surface 49 which is inclined from true horizontal by, say, 60. Accordingly, as the shelf 13 is lowered, the camming surfaces 49 engage the tabs 47 at the outer ends of the plates 27 and 28 to center the shelf and cause it to wedge between the cross arms 17 and 22. Of course, the tabs 47 provide some longitudinal reinforcement of the shelf 13. If additional reinforcement is desired, the

center sections 51 and 52 of the plates 27 and 28 may be bent under the front and rear shelf edges, respectively, and secured to the underside of the shelf, typically by rivets 53. Indeed, it will he understood that if the shelf 13 is substantially uniform in thickness rather than having a thickness that varies considerably as shown, the plates 27 and 28 need not have end tabs but may simply be bent under the shelf along their entire lengths.

Referring finally to FIG. 7, the bolt 35 may be biased for automatic return to its locking position. For example, a tension spring 61 may be connected at one end to the finger catch 43 and at its outer end to a pin 62 which, in turn, is fixed to the shelf 13. In this particular arrangement, the tensioning of the spring 61 as the bolt 3S is withdrawn from its locking position is relied upon to return the bolt to its locking position and the pin 62 is, therefore, spaced outwardly from the iinger catch 43. However, other alternative biasing arrangements may, of course, be employed.

From the foregoing it will now be apparent that the present invention provides a concealed latching mechanism for swingable shelves which is effective to (l) lock the shelf against swinging, (2) materially reinforce and support the shelf, and (3) center the shelf when it is returned to its normal position.

We claim as our invention:

1. For use in a semi-permanent storage facility of the type having forward and rearward supporting frameworks with a shelf pivotally mounted therebetween for swinging movement between a normal lowered position and a raised position, said shelf having a downwardly depending and inwardly opening substantially C-shaped channel extending between said supporting frameworks, a concealed latching mechanism for permitting said shelf to be locked in its lowered position and for additionally structurally reinforcing said shelf, said latching mechanism comprising the combination of a strike member fixed to one of said supporting frameworks and extending therefrom toward the other of said supporting frameworks to provide a substantially horizontal stop which underlies said shelf when it is in its lowered position, and a bolt member having an intermediate shank portion which is slidably housed within said channel, a finger catch at one end which extends inwardly from said shank portion through the open side of said channel, and a substantially horizontal tongue at its other end which is slid under and out from under said stop by movement of said bolt member to lock and unlock, respectively, said shelf when it is in its normal lowered position.

2. The latching mechanism of claim 1 wherein said bolt member and said strike portion are formed from respective single pieces of bar stock, and the bar stock of said bolt member is supported on edge within said channel to form said shank portion, and said tongue is bent slightly downwardly from true horizontal to provide a self-camming action for facilitating its movement under and out from under said stop.

3. The latching mechanism of claim 1 wherein said strike portion further includes an inclined camming surface positioned to engage an edge of said shelf as said shelf is lowered from its raised position to aid in centering said shelf between said supporting frameworks.

4. For use in a semi-permanent storage facility of the type having forward and rearward supporting frameworks, the combination comprising a shelf pivotally mounted between said frameworks for swinging movement between a normal lowered position and a raised position, said shelf being sized to be wedged between said frameworks when in its lowered position to thereby aid in preventing movement of said frameworks relative to one another and having an inwardly opening substantially C-shaped channel thereon extending between said frameworks, a pair of concealed latching mechanisms for permitting said shelf to be locked in its lowered position and for additional reinforcing of said shelf, each of said latching mechanisms having a strike portion and a bolt member, each of said strike portions being fixed to a respective one of said frameworks and extending therefrom to provide a substantially horizontal stop which underlies said shelf when it is in its lowered position, each of said bolt members having a shank portion which is slidably housed within said channel and a substantially horizontal tongue which is slid under and out from under a respective one of said stops by movement of said bolt member to lock and unlock, respectively, said shelf when it is in its normal lowered position.

5. The combination of claim 4 wherein said shelf has respective plates secured to and extending lengthwise along its front and rear edges, said plates being held in firm frictional engagement with said forward and rearward supporting frameworks, respectively, when said shelf is in its lowered position, and wherein each of said strike portions further include an inclined camming surface positioned to engage a respective one of said plates as said shelf is lowered from its raised position to thereby center said shelf for wedging between said supporting frameworks.

6. The combination of claim 5 wherein each of said bolt members are formed from bar stock and said bar stock is supported within said channel on edge to form the shank portions of said bolt members, and further including a spacer bar housed within said channel between the shank portions of said bolt members to further reinforce said shelf.

7. The combination of claim 6 wherein each of said plates is bent under and secured to the underside of said shelf along at least a portion of its length to thereby provide lengthwise reinforcement of said shelf, each of said tongues is bent slightly downwardly relative to its stop for providing a self-camming action to thereby facilitate movement of said tongue under and out from under said stop, and each of said bolt members further includes a finger catch which is secured thereto and which extends inwardly through the open -side of said channel.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,351,403 ll/l967 Magnuson 312-245 BOBBY R. GAY, Primary Examiner I. C. MITCHELL, Assistant Examiner U.S. C1. X.R. 312-245 

